Love and War
by pyro-techninja11
Summary: She was your average medic nin living in an endless war. He was a vampire prince whose people closed themsleves off from the world, wanting nothing to do with the war. SASUXSAKU, other pairrings, and maybe a few lemons, too.
1. Chapter 1

**ok, this is techinically my second story, but for all tense and purposes, let's just call it my first ok?**

**as it's said to give thanks/praise where thanks/praise is due... blah, blah, blah, my senpai beat me within a millimeter of my life, so i had to put this up, blah, blah, blah. **

**i don't own naruto, but that's ok, i've come to except that... for now }:D**

**now then i'm pretty sure she's gonna beat me within a millimeter of my life again, so i'm gonna go hide.**

**enjoy the story =]**

* * *

Sakura looked at the door to Tsunade's office and took a deep breath before entering. She knew that something was wrong, by the wakeup call she received a little while ago.

_Flash back_

_Having finished a long and tiring shift in the hospital the night before, Sakura was sound asleep in her large, warm, and most of all, comfortable bed. That is, before someone started banging at her front door. _

_Groaning the girl forced herself to get out of bed to go answer it._

_She was halfway there, and the banging had only intensified, as the person at the door grew more and more impatient. "Come on billboard brow! Get your lazy ass outta bed, and open the door!" _great,_ she thought, _it's Ino.

_Right as she was about to open the door, she heard Ino yell, "Fine, then I'm coming in!" and with that the door was flung open and came within inches of slamming into the rosette's tired face. "KAMI!" "There you are! What took you so long to answer?! Are you that lazy, that you can't even get outta bed and answer your damn door?!" she seemed to take no notice of what could've happened to her best friend._

"_Who are you calling lazy, Pig?! I'm tired because I had to work double shift, because you wanted to go out to dinner with Choji!""Well, you owed me for covering you on your birthday, all because you didn't want to have to deal with the fanboys! And besides, I've been trying to get you up for the past ten minutes now; I don't have all day, I have to get ready…" she went off into a rant about several things, which is normal behavior for her._

_End flash back_

The only problem was Ino really had been in a huge hurry, and that paired with being sleepy, left Sakura with very little information. All she knew was they had a medical mission, and Tsunade had wanted to see her immediately.

Without looking up, Tsunade started to debrief her.

"There has been another attack on the Iwagakure, and the casualty rate is exceedingly high. They are in desperate need of medical assistance, as about half of their medics are down along with roughly two thirds of the village. The Tsuchkage has requested we send some of our own medics, and specifically asked for you, by name. Your mission is to help heal their medics first, and remain there until they are able to take care of matters on their own. As they start to get things in order, send back any medics that you can spare. You are also to report in by messenger hawks every two weeks, with full summary of the situation, is that clear?"

Finally managing to compose herself enough, Tsunade looked up from her paperwork, and at her young apprentice – No she passed the level of apprentice years ago and was more like a daughter to her now. And because of that, she hated the idea of Sakura being so close to danger. There was no doubt in her mind that the younger medic could take care of herself, but at the same time, the thought of losing her was almost too much to bear. With a confident tone, Sakura replied, "Hai, Shishou."

As she was turning to leave, Tsunade adds in, "and Sakura…" the girl stops and looks back. "Hai?" "…good luck." She nods and exits. _And be careful…_

* * *

Upon arriving at her one bedroom, two bath apartment, Sakura noticed that her door was practically in splinters, thanks to two large craters; one in the center, close to the top, and the other at about waist level. It was also off its hinges. _When we get back, that pig is buying me a new door!_

Walking past her busted door, she entered her house. It was very clean with basic furnishings due to the fact that she was usually at the hospital, and really the only person ever in here; with the exception of an occasional visit from Ino, Naruto, Hinata, or some other friend. Passing though the living-room and past the kitchen, the pink haired girl went to her bedroom. Her bed sat along one of the walls and had simple white sheets, with a pink comforter that matched the paint on her walls. She had a desk to work at if she had to bring some paperwork home, as well as a bookshelf full of medical books and scrolls for research.

Going up to her closet, Sakura grabbed a decent amount of clothes for a mission as long as this one, and folded them all on her bed. She then went into her adjoining bathroom to get a few toiletries, as well as her hamper so that she didn't have to return home to a pile of dirty clothes. After starting the washer stated, the young medic went to her book shelf and grabbed a few scrolls, as well as her medic bag that had been sitting on top.

Having packed, Sakura rechecked her weapons and medical supplies. Satisfied with everything, she headed out the doorway, and set up a barrier in case someone decided to try and enter while she was away.

* * *

As she headed for the main gates, she thought about her life. It was pretty basic, really. She grew up training to be a ninja and rose up the ranks like everyone else. After seeing her parents die, Sakura had made the decision to be a medic in order to help people. Of course her best friend and long time rival, Ino, became a medic, too, soon after.

Now, at the age of 18, the only family she really had was Tsunade, Ino, Hinata, and her team: Yamato, Sai, and Naruto. Tsunade was almost like a mother to her, and if one stretched their imagination far enough, Yamato could be seen as somewhat of a fatherly figure. Ino and Hinata and her were all as close as sisters, and even went as far as to call themselves such. Sai was more like a cousin, but that was because he never let anyone get close to him emotionally. Then there was Naruto. He was her brother, and she loved him very deeply as such.

They had been close even before the demons had started attacking the humans, and so she wasn't at all afraid to be near him after he had become possessed by the fox demon. Hinata would've done the same, if not for her extreme shyness; she still faints every now and then. Some of the villagers are still wary of him, but most of them are starting to come around; and Naruto truly was good at keeping it controlled. There have been only a few rare occasions where things have gotten outta hand, but with Yamato's help, nothing too bad has happened. The worst thing was probably when he was first made into a host, or jinchuuriki, as the demons called them.

_Flash back_

_Naruto and Sakura were playing in the forest, just outside Konoha, when a small group of people appeared. They seemed like regular shinobi, except they didn't have hitai-ates, and had strange markings on their faces._

_They looked the children over and one focused on the Naruto. His eyes were outlined with thick black lines, which ran back to his ears, and his mouth was also outlined. "Yes… you'll do nicely…" he said. _

_Before the two could react, Naruto was being held still by two of the strangers, one on each arm, as the man with black markings started to perform some sort of incantation. Naruto began to struggle, but the two men were too strong for him. He began to panic, and cried for help. Noticing that none of the strange men were paying her any attention, Sakura ran back to the village to get help._

_By the time she arrived with several ANBU members, the men were gone, and Naruto was lying on the ground. His shirt had a circular hole in the abdomen area, through which could be seen a large black seal. Naruto also had three black whiskers on each cheek. He was admitted to the hospital immediately, and was there for about three weeks, but no one could figure out what was wrong, or what had happened. All they knew was that his chakra levels increased drastically, and he seemed to be able to heal faster._

_End flash back._

It was soon discovered that very similar incidents had occurred in each of the hidden villages. And soon after that, the demons came forth again, declaring who they were, and that they were to take over the land. Thus began the war, that has been plaguing the world ever since.

Sakura arrived at the gates, where Ino had been waiting, and after the rest of the medics arrived, they set off to complete their mission. As they left, her mind became very focused, but as they passed the spot where Naruto had been possessed, one thought slipped into her head.

_It was because of this war that there was so much turmoil, pain, and hated in the world. And it was because of this war, that I must go help the shinobi of the village hidden in the rocks, rebuild their stronghold against the demons. Someday, I will bring an end to this hideous war._

**alright peoples, you know the drill, review the story. i've decided to take senpai's tactics, and not update till i get 5 reviews.**

**and yes, Sasuke will be introduced soon, i promise, but you gotta read and reivew first ;)**

**-pyro-techninja11**

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	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, i know i said i wasn't gonna post untill i got 5 reviews, but i'm going outta the country in 10 days. I will have computer access, but I won't have the time to write or post anything.**

**no tears left to cry: here you go, but it's not till the very end...but next chapter will have more =]**

**C.A.M.E.O.1 and only: within the next chapter, or the one after that i promise! (it all depends on how i'm gonna set up the chapter content from now on)**

**yourlovelymaiden: [no A/N for you, and you know why] XP *runs for dear life***

* * *

Sakura and Ino were now the only ones left from Konoha; they had only been in Iwagakure for about two months now, and all of the medics were healed. They were also able to take care of most of the patients on their own, but the two kunoichis had stayed to help get the hospital back to code, and to personally take care of the more severely injured. The villagers had managed to clear out all of the debris and begin construction and repairs. Things were looking up, and the situation was constantly and rapidly improving. If everything continued this way, Sakura and Ino would be able to return home in a few more weeks. Of course the two would still have to turn in a written report to Tsunade and start right where they left off in Konoha's hospital, but maybe they might be able to get a day or two off before the latter.

It was late, and Sakura was still up; she was finishing up the report for the last two weeks, making sure that everything made sense and was correct before she sent it tomorrow. Ino was already sound asleep in the other room. The pink haired girl stood, turning off the light, ready to go to bed, when there was a large explosion heard outside, near what was left of the main gate. Soon shouts and screaming could be heard throughout the air, as panic began to set in.

Running into the two bedded room to grab her things and wake her friend, Sakura found that the blonde was already getting ready. "What's going on? Are the demons attacking again?" she asked, pulling her long hair into its usual high ponytail. "I'm not sure, but that would be my guess. They must've already recovered from the last attack, and are coming back for more." "Damn, fast-healing bastards!"

As soon as they were ready, they headed out the building, and saw numerous demons in their true forms, causing complete chaos. Citizens were screaming and running for their lives, in every direction, and the shinobi were being thrown and knocked around.

An ANBU block-op landed next to them, and wasted no time informing them on the entire situation. "…The Tsuchkage will be able to send them into a retreat with his secret jutsu, but he will need time to prepare, so we must hold them off as long as possible. We need you to go help the other medics heal those that are fighting." Both girls nodded and headed off.

They found a group of chuunin, all bleeding and lying strewn about. Sakura ran to the ones that were out in the open, to drag them to shelter while Ino started on the ones that were somewhat hidden. The two medics began to heal them and the ones that weren't as badly injured ran off to go help fight.

Sakura was working on a man who appeared to be in the worst condition, out of all of them. He had several, deep lacerations, and had lost a ton of blood. He also had been partially disemboweled, with many of his vitals open or dislocated; it looked like an animal attack, which could only mean that it was a demon in their true form, and one with claws and fangs and that.

Ino's current patient wasn't as badly torn up; just a few large bite wounds. However, he had a drastically lethal amount of poison in his blood, and it had already spread everywhere.

* * *

The Tsuchkage had managed to use his jutsu, and the demons had left retreated. Most everyone survived the attack, but there were still casualties. The village was completely in shambles, with very little hope of being rebuilt with the war still raging. It had been decided, via messenger hawks, that the remaining villages would pack up what they had, and go to Konoha till things could be dealt with.

At the moment, the citizens and most of the shinobi had made it to Konoha, and the rest were preparing to leave, making sure that everything such as village secrets and important documents were all collected, and not left behind. Sakura and Ino had just recently finished healing the Tsuchkage, to the point that he could travel, and were heading back home, along with the village head and his personal ANBU guards.

They had stopped so that the Tsuchkage could rest. Some of the guards and the two medics left to secure the perimeter. "How close are we to Konoha?" asked an ANBU member with a bear mask. "Pretty close, at the rate we've been traveling, we should reach the main gates before sundown." replied another with a boar mask on.

Sakura leaned over to Ino, smirking. "Maybe he's a distant relative of yours. When you get home be sure to ask your parents and see if he's like some fifth cousin that's been removed, or whatever. Ok, Pig?" "Shut it, Forehead girl!" Ino walked off, as the others were splitting up into teams, with Sakura following her, not finished with her teasing. "Oh, come on Ino, it's just a joke. Besides, he may not be related to you, and simple had the poor luck to get stuck with your family's fat 'mascot' for a mask…" "You are REALLY pushing it billboard brow, if you make one more comment about my family, I'll knock you out with my mind jutsu!" "Ha! You have to catch me first, Ino!" and with that Sakura lightly shoved the blonde, and ran off. "Sakura, get back here! We're on a mission for Kami sake!"

Sakura ran laughing to herself. _Ino will throw a fit if she doesn't catch up to me soon, better find a clearing to hide in. that way when she gets close, I can scare her._ She entered a small clearing and was about looking for the best place to hide, when suddenly, she was thrown against a tree, with enough force to knock the wind out of her, and send her hatai-ate falling to the ground, where she had been standing.

Suddenly, someone was in front of her, pinning her to the tree. "Well, well, well. What do we have here? A Konoha girl?" "Get off me!" Sakura sent a surge of chakra through her right fist which connected with the attacker's stomach, sending him flying into a tree across the clearing.

Laughing, and seemingly unfazed, the man stood up. He had dark brown hair that almost looked black, with matching eyes. "Ooh, a kunoichi! Those are my favorite." Before she could react, Sakura was pinned against the tree once again with her same arm above her head. "they're so tasty…" the man grinned, flashing a pair of fangs. Sakura went to hit him with her left, but he caught her wrist, and pinned it up above her head with the other one. Before she could send chakra into one of her legs, he shifted so that he was in-between her legs, making any attempt to kick useless. "You're very pretty, you know that? It almost hurts me to have to do this to you…" She continued to struggle, but made no progress as the man leaned in and grazed her neck with his fangs.

_What the hell is this guy?! Demons don't eat humans!..._ She cringed as she felt stop and get ready to sink his fangs in. but instead of the pain she expected to feel on her pulse, she was knocked to the ground. Looking up she saw that there was now a second man in the clearing. This one was fighting with the dark brunette, and clearly winning. Sakura tried to get up and run, but she was low on chakra due to traveling and healing all day, and then punching her attacker away. Her ankle was twisted from being knocked aside, and she knew she had a few cracked and possibly broken ribs; in fact, I was getting really hard for her to breath and remain conscious. Her vision continued to go in and out of focus, and a dark haze started to obscure her view of the fight. The Rosette tried to shake her head to clear things up, but it was no use. She was falling unconscious.

Before she lost it, a third man came into view. He went up to the brunette, and started to help the other man tie him up. Then they both approached her. The one who just arrived had white hair that seemed to jet out to the left of his head, and he wore a cloth mask that went up to his nose, covering his entire lower face. The man who had saved her had raven hair that hung down on either side of his face, and spiked out in the back. She saw in amazement as his eyes turned from bright scarlet to deep obsidian.

She tried to stay conscious, but soon all she could see was black. As she started to fade from reality, she heard them discussing what to do with her. "What do you think, Kakashi?" "Well we can leave her here and hope for the best, or take her with us and at the very least, care for her till she can return home… but She may have seen too much already, and may have to stay… But you it's up to you Sasuke."

* * *

Ino had finished securing the perimeter, and decided to go look for Sakura, along with a few of the ANBU. _Where is she?! Kami, she should've been back by now…_ She continued to search through the forest, and soon came upon a clearing. There were definite signs of a struggle, and a splintered tree across the clearing from a slightly cracked one. _Sakura must've been pinned against the tree, and knocked the attacker in to that splintered one…_The blonde had managed to stay somewhat calm until she spotted Sakura's red hatai-ate lying in the middle of the clearing. She ran up to pick it up, and suddenly sensed someone behind her.

Turning around she saw a demon with brown spiky hair, and red fangs on each of his cheeks. "You?!" she cried, "Where's Sakura?!" "Who?" replied the boy. "Don't play dumb with me, where is she?!" "Now that's funny coming from a blonde… but I have no idea wh–" He was cut off by someone from behind, who had shoved him forward, onto his hands and knees. Ino ran up to him and grabbed his shirt collar, making him look up into her glare. "I'm gonna ask you one last time. Where is Sa-ku-ra?!" He growled. "And I'M gonna tell YOU one last time; I. Don't. Know!" "LIAR!" She stood and kicked him in his temple, knocking him out.

The two ANBU members behind him picked him up, and one asked, "Should we take him with us to Konoha, for questioning?" "Yes, Tsunade-sama is definitely gonna wanna have a word with him." The Masked shinobi nodded and they all turned to head back towards the others.

* * *

**well there you go =] hope you enjoyed it, and please review!**

**i meantioned i was going outta the country in ten days, which is why i won't be able to post or work on this for atleast month. i'll be in Costa Rica all July: i leave the 2nd and won't be back till sometime on the 31st.**

**also, make sure to read and review my senpai's story: Flower of Temptation. (she'll need something to take her mind off the fact that i'll be gone, and she won't have anyone to beat up...)**

**-pyro-techninja11**


	3. Chapter 3

**First and foremost, I apologize to anyone and everyone who has read this story, especially those who read it when I published it. There's no real excuse for my not writing, especially since I myself hate it when I read a good story and then have to wait for-fucking-ever to read more, but I was caught up in a ton of other pieces of literature, school, and so on... and yes, these are generic reasons - though very good, they're very old...**

**I CAN however say something that not even my formore senpai, yourlovelymaiden, can say: I was inside a giant man-eating plant for a good two months or so, which is a major reason why I haven't written! but again, I am very, very sorry. *cue apologetic bowing* I am also sorry to say that updates will be random as I can't exactly plan time to sit and write - I can but then writer's block decides to be a bitch and make me stare at a blank screen the entire fucking time... I can only hope for all of your sakes that it leaves me be enough to keep up a semi-steady update schedule, but again, no promises.**

**(personal notes at bottom cuz this is so long of an intro)**

**Now then, without further postponement... chapter 3 **

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Kiba woke up with the worst headache in his life; his left temple seemed to be the center of the whole thing. _What the hell happened… and where am I!_ Taking in his surroundings, he got his answer. He was in a chair with his hands secured behind him, and surrounded by Humans. _Not just any humans…Konoha, ANBU… perfect. _"What am I doing here?"

Suddenly, something struck the back of his head; hard. "OW!" "WE ask the questions, and YOU answer them." He knew that voice… _Oh, no… not __**her**__!…_ He turned his head, causing another round of pain to surge through him, to see the same girl from the clearing. And from the looks of it she was still pissed. He growled at her, but not wanting to receive more blows to his already abused head, did nothing else.

"Let's start with the basics. What were you doing in that clearing?" This new voice was male, and older; not to mention MUCH calmer. He turned his head slowly to avoid as much pain as he could. This man looked just like the girl; long, blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail, and ice blue eyes. He also had a facial structure, very similar to the girl's. _heh, must be her dad or something._ "Well to be honest it's a little hard to remember, what with the concussions your little angel's giving me and all…" he lightly motioned to Ino with his head which sent the room turning for a few seconds.

He gave a brief grunt as he tried to get his bearings again, and he did notice that Ino looked both offended and slightly embarrassed at his statement. The father however didn't change expression at all. _He must do this sorta thing for a living…_ "Look, boy we can go about this two ways; the e-" "Easy way or the hard way; I know. But I'm telling the truth; hell I can't even figure out which one of the five of you's real, and the room keeps spinning every fifteen seconds!" the man stared at him for a moment, trying to decide whether or not he was just being difficult.

"Alright then…" the man moved closer, and Kiba instinctively leaned back away from him. The man closed his eyes, and started to form hand signs. "W-what are you doing?" Kiba completely pressed against the back of the chair, in a weak attempt to escape. "You can't seem to recall anything, so I'm simply gonna find it myself." He stated matter-of-factly. "Wha-?" before he could finish the word, Kiba slumped into his chair, having fallen under the mind jutsu.

* * *

Sakura woke to discover that she was laying on a large bed, under black silk sheets with a warm, matching comforter that were pulled up to her shoulders. Her head was resting on the ends of the two large and very comfortable pillows. She sat up and started to look around "Where am I?"

"My private chambers." She jumped a little and turned to look at him, which she instantly regretted as her vision went a little foggy again. He was sitting on a chair off in the corner, like he had been sitting there, watching her the whole time. "You… You're the man from the clearing…Sasuke…" he nods, not bothering to give a verbal explanation. Oddly enough, she didn't feel scared or threatened, or rather, those feelings were being overpowered by some sense of security that she couldn't explain.

She tried to get up and winced at the pain in her leg and torso. Gritting her teeth, she stated her medical assessment out of habit. "Three cracked ribs and a twisted ankle…" "One's broken. The other two are all-but. And the ligament is strained and slightly tore." She gave him a questioning look. "My mother is a medic." "That explains the bandages…" She looked over the room with a light blush on her face. "Um… can I ask… why I'm in your bed?..." "So that the others don't discover you're presence."

"Others?... where am I, who are you?... what are you?"

He seemed to be thinking things over and then finally spoke, "I am Sasuke, second in line to the vampiric throne, held by the Uchiha clan. You're in here so that the other vampires won't discover you and try to eat you." "You're… a v-vampire?... I thought they were just legend…" "That's because that's what we want you to think. We could see this war that's been raging between the humans and demons long before it started, and have decided to remain neutral. The best way to do that was to 'disappear'." "Then why was I attacked?..." "We vampires are sustained by blood; any blood will do, but there's also the matter of taste. Generally speaking males prefer female blood and vice versa. The more athletic, the cleaner and richer the blood is with oxygen."

The girl paled as she realized that made her a prime rib for any of the males that might be here, including him. "Hn. I'm not going to eat you." "A-arigato..." He swiftly dipped his head, and she almost didn't see it, before getting up to leave. "Don't leave this room if you want to live." Having already crossed the room, he reached out to open the door, and she spoke up. "Sasuke-san… um, if your kind is staying out of the war, why did you save me?..." He froze for a moment trying to figure out the answer, himself. "If you had been killed, the demons would've suspected us. We must remain invisible at all costs." He promptly exited, and his words rang through her head bringing up so many questions. '_At all costs…' are they gonna kill me to keep unnoticed?...but then why did they bother to heal me?...are they gonna make me a vampire as well…? What about Naruto and Ino, and Shishou?...and the village…? Will I ever see them again?..._

The servants bowed as he glided through the hallways, intent on finding his mother. He suddenly turned and walked out through the courtyards to the back where she often spent her free time. "Ka-san," Sasuke stepped closer so no one could overhear him. "She's awake." She smile and nodded, as she planted the last bulb. "I'll be in the second I wash up. You should talk to Kakashi and your father about this though." He nodded again and headed off to the council room, using back passages to stay out of sight of the annoying fangirls.

Arriving at the room, he wasn't surprised to see Kakashi there, reading his book. _Typical._ "Things aren't looking too well. Apparently a demon was investigating the area and was captured." "Hn. that covers our tracks." "Hai, but that's if things remain as they are…" The door opened and two raven haired men walked in, both having minor age lines along the cheeks. "Tou-san, Aniki."

* * *

Following the vampire queen's advice, Sakura stayed in bed but was now very hungry, as her stomach continued to announce rather noisily. Placing a hand on it, she mentally willed it to silence but knew that she needed to eat soon. The door opened and her heart jumped into her throat as her stomach began a gymnastic routine, flipping about. Much to her relief, Sasuke walked in, and he was holding a tray of food. "Here." He set the tray on her lap and moved back to his chair, watching her. "Arigato…" She didn't see him smirk as she made a point to eat very neatly and calmly despite the hunger she had to have had. When she finished he stood and took the tray, heading back to the door. "S-sasuke-san…" He paused, turning his head only slightly to acknowledge her. "What… what exactly is going to happen?... to me?..." He didn't answer her, and just stood there for a few moments. "You should rest." With that, he walked out.

* * *

**Fear Die Rothaargie & ****C.A.M.E.O.1 and Only: I'm working on working both Kakashi and Naruto into the story more and I won't promise this, but there IS a good chance of them each getting their own epic fight scene, and/or lemon. **

**yourlovelymaiden: 1) beat ya! XP 2) I'm curious as to how this is gonna go down from now on, now that you're not training me...**

**Everyone else: read, review, love... (and sorry it's so short...)**

**-pyro-techninja11**


	4. Chapter 4

**First and foremost, disclaimers of the story are in the first chapter.**

**Second, I am sorry that this took so long to update. I'd say that writer's block and college and work got in the way - which they did - but EVERYONE has things going on in their life, right? Why am I updating now after all this time? 'cause every time I get a notice that someone new has favorited and followed me, I die a little from guilt, as I myself really hate it when I find something like a story or series that I love, and it just stops in the middle.  
**

**PLEASE, if you have ANY questions of what you want answered or to see, PLEASE ask them in the reviews. It helps me more than you'll probably even know. 'cause to be honest, I have only hints of ideas of where I want this to go, and the questions give me either better ideas, or help me improve those I've already got. And to be PERFECTLY honest, this story is for you readers, so I gotta know where you want it to go, so I can write it.**

**I also wanna apologize for one last thing. This is the fourth chapter, and still not lemons... I am ashamed... and so very sorry for those of you who like lemons...**

* * *

"THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE! HOW COULD TSUNADE-SAMA ALLOW THIS!?" "Ino-ne, p-please calm down… um… you're making a scene…" The white-eyed kunoichi looked around the restaurant nervously, seeing people starring and a few whispering. "Ino-chan please…" Choji rested a hand, still holding his chopsticks, on the blonde's shoulder, who eventually sat down with a huff. "I still don't like it!" She crossed her arms, having spoken her mind for the very short time being "I know, but you heard your father's report, yourself…" "H-hai… and by keeping him in the village, Ino-ne, we can keep an eye on him…"

"I'm with Ino… and at the very least they should keep an eye on him by locking his ass up, not keeping him at your house with your family Hinata-chan…" Naruto also had his arms crossed as he stared into the table's barbecue pit. "Well the Hyuuga ARE our village's strongest clan… and with their byakugan, they can keep the sharpest eye on the demon," Choji popped a piece of meat into his mouth. "He STILL needs to have his ass thrown in jail! Let them watch the son-of-a-bitch there!" Ino was riled up again and began yet another rant.

* * *

_Man I'm bored…_ The dog demon's eyes took in the grand courtyard, complete with men watching his every move. "At this rate they might as well have thrown me in jail…" "Jail would've been merciful." Kiba quickly turned to look at the voice behind him, to see a white-eyed brunette girl, who looked just a few years younger than him. She sat down next to him and looked out over the yard with bored eyes.

"I've heard a little of how your clan's set up… you must be from the branch family, right?" "Worse. I'm from the head family." "Huh?..." Her head barely moved as she briefly regarded his confused expression before looking up at the moon. "I'm the second heiress to this clan, so I'm under constant supervision unless I'm on a mission or lucky enough to be allowed off the grounds…" "Hai… this war is pointless and is causing pain for no reason!…" The girl raised an eyebrow but quickly regained her composure before looking at him. "Well it's not like WE started it…" "Hey I didn't start it either, I just got born into this race…" She regarded him for a second and two figures approached, "Hanabi-sama, dinner is prepared and your father and the elders are all waiting." Standing she sighed and headed over to follow them into the house, "Well anyways, welcome to prison…"

* * *

"I told you getting involved in this war would be troublesome…" The strategist sat at the council table, pinching the bridge of his nose. His hair was pulled back into a tufted ponytail, and his beard pointed into a goatee. His hand shifted to slide down the side of his face, sporting two large scars as he continued. "We can't just leave her here; the longer she's gone, the longer they'll investigate and we could be discovered. The whole point of 'disappearing' was to stay out of the war, not be forced into it by one side or the other." "She knows too much to leave, Shikaku-san. If we were to let her go, we'd be found out for sure." Itachi sat to his father's right, across the table from the strategist and his son.

"Why was she even brought here in the first place; wouldn't leaving her there have been much less troublesome?" The younger strategist sat with his arms crossed, still wondering how this mess had even come to occur. "At least then they'd still think it was a demon, right? Since the rouge hadn't actually bitten her?" "Demons don't eat humans, and he made it clear she was to be his meal. She knew from that comment on it wasn't a demon, so if she'd been left, we'd be found out soon. We had to take her." Sasuke sat to the other side of his father, and went silent again after clearing the matter up.

"The point is, she's here and she knows. We need to figure out what to do about it now." Itachi looked back to the older men, hoping to get on with the discussion. "Well, knowing why it happened can help with discerning the most appropriate action. Not to mention it will help to know how to prevent it. The rouge's only the beginning , I think. We've been in hiding so long, that clans have been meshed in just about every way possible. Not only is food sources running low for the younger generations, mate options are too." "What are you saying, Kakashi?"

"That while it's feasible that marrying relatives won't have as harsh a repercussion on our genetics as is does to other races, I doubt many will find the thought appealing. Not to mention lineages would blend, making claims to the throne difficult and almost certainly bloody in the future. And as for the food, well we could survive off of animal blood, but I highly doubt any of us would want to run the risk of sparkling in the sunlight, or some other possible side effect."

"You're right Kakashi-san…" Shikamaru sighed, stating what the older man was implying. "All in all, going into hiding was effective in keeping us out of the war in the beginning, but it's run it's course and sooner or later more incidents of unmated vampires attacking the others for food or kidnapping them for a mate will happen. And when it does, we'll be found out. Sooner or later we're going to have to reveal ourselves to the others. It looks like avoiding the war was never really an option; Troublesome…"

"That leads back to the first question, then. What do we do about the girl?"

* * *

"Mikoto-san?" Sakura watched as the woman changed her bandages for her. "Hai, Sakura?" She glance up in acknowledgement but continued with her work. "Sasuke-san said that you knew this war was going to happen, which is why you went into hiding, why's that?" The question had been on Sakura's mind for a while, and since the more pressing questions were not being answered for her, she figured simply asking wouldn't hurt.

"Well the unfortunate war now is the result of growing tensions from a long time ago, and the few steps towards peace that never continued… You see, the demons and humans have always been at each other's throats for as long as I can remember; even longer than that, actually. On one hand, the demons viewed the humans as inferior and wanted to wipe them out as they believed they were of no use to anyone of importance. A group of sympathizers attempted to change their leader's plan from annihilation to incorporation… they hoped to spare the humans by integrating them into the demon race."

"That's why they possessed the children?" Sakura's thoughts fell to Naruto and she began to worry about what sort of hell he might be raising, thinking the demons took her. "Hai. We think this might have just been an attempt to buy time for the humans, as it took quite a few decades to prepare. Then of course they possessed the children, since it would take much longer for them to reproduce, giving even a little more time. However, the possessions took the lives of those who preformed them, and with the group of radicals no longer fighting the leaders, the original plan for war took over."

"So some demons were actually on our side… though their methods were twisted." "Well the humans aren't guiltless either, Sakura. They had been planning to enslave the demons and use their power for their own use, or at the very least kill them, so as to eliminate the possible threat of the demons enslaving them instead. Needless to say, tension was strong on either side. The real crime was that they forced children to fight… As if the fighting wasn't bad enough, that there was no real reason for it if they'd only accepted the other race, but then they forced innocent children to do the fighting for them, on both sides… That's why the villages were formed."

"The villages were formed to raise children to fight for the war? But the villages were made decades ago and the war started only a few years ago…" "Ie, there was a sort of war before the villages, where the children were forced to fight. In an attempt to end it, we spoke with both sides privately… both agreed that their children needed to be spared. A previous ruler of ours, Madara, worked with the human leaders, the Senju, to create the villages, as strongholds to protect the children and non warriors, while they attempted negotiations with the demons. Likewise, the demons took their children and non warriors back to their own lands, while negotiations were underway."

"The negotiations never worked though…" "Ie, they didn't… but while they were attempted, the younger generations were unaware of these underlying tensions, and so for a time, it was believed the war had ended. The older councils on both sides continued to argue on in secret, thought, and pride stood in the way of peace. We could only mediate so far, and once it was clear that another war would break out, it was decided that the best choice for us was to stay out of it, less we be forced to choose sides." Mikoto finished tending to the girl and sat up to look her in the eye. "That's where we are today, trying to stay out of the war we couldn't prevent, since neither side will see that the violence is useless, and both races are necessary for the other to prosper." The Queen stood and headed to the door. "I'll send Sasuke back with another tray of food once the meeting is over, try to get some rest."

* * *

"None of the indications show that the demon was responsible for the disappearance of the girl. What do you want us to do about this, Danzou-sama?" The shinobi lifted his head from his kneeling position, to look at his master. "It would seem as though the vampires have their decision on whose side they're going to take… Very well, then. Keep the beast under surveillance, and let the rest of the village believe it was a demon. Our enemies do not know we have seen through their ploy, and we will continue to act as such until an opportunity presents itself to exploit their folly. Go, inform the rest of our men about this so they will not be caught off guard themselves, I will speak to the rest of the ancient council on the matter." "It will be done."

* * *

**Duhn, duhn, duuuuuuuuhn! **

**Again, PLEASE ask questions... I can't make any promise as to when I'll update next, but it will be easier/sooner with questions/comments/concerns/etc.**

**-pyro-techninja11**


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